Spa-Francorchamps

1924-1953: An endurance Grand Prix

The managers of the Royal Automobile Club of Belgium, aware of the importance of organizing their own Endurance Grand-Prix, build up their first 24 Hours of Belgium. This race was a test for the production of the Belgian manufacturers willing to meet the challenge against the foreign competitors.

1964-1988: The ordinary everyday car!

The rebirth, and in the meantime, the creation of the ‘modern’ 24 Hours of Spa in 1964 was the direct consequence of the growing popularity for touring car races. In the Golden Sixties, the automobile reigned supreme and the importers or manufacturers’ representatives understood the advantages of those races, which where seen as successful advertising campaigns for everyday cars.

1989-2010: From Touring to Grand Touring

After the cancellation of the European Touring Car Championship in 1988, the organizers were no longer able to rely on an existing championship, so there no longer was a uniform rulebook able to guarantee a quality field. From then on, the organizers looked endlessly for the ideal format, sometimes typically Belgian, bringing a new energy to the event. The solution came in 2001, when the SRO Motorsports Group included the race in the FIA GT championship. From now on the big and powerful GT’s would rule Spa.

2011-...: Crown jewel of a new championship

After the cancellation of the FIA GT championship in 2009 there were some dark clouds gathering over Spa, but a solution was at hand: from 2011 the Total 24 Hours of Spa became the headliner of the Blancpain Endurance Series, a new initiative of the SRO Motorsports Goup. The new championship is reserved for GT3-cars and has an enormous success, resulting in 60-car starting grids. In 2015 SRO creates the Blancpain GT Series, combining endurance and sprint races. The Total 24 Hours of Spa remains the blue chip event of the new series, and sees its status confirmed when in 2016 it is included in the new Intercontinental GT Challenge, the first truly global GT3 championship.

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